Rockies 9, Dodgers 4: Bud Black is “The Millennium Man”

The Colorado Rockies entered today’s afternoon affair with a chance to steal a series win from the Los Angeles Dodgers to kick off the season. Not only did they accomplish this feat, they did so convincingly with a 9-4 final score over their NL West big brothers. The Rockies roared ahead in the first inning and never looked back, holding the lead for the entirety of the game. Now the Rockies hold a winning record for the first time since April 1st, 2021 and have claimed a series win over the Dodgers at home for the first time since 2018.

The Millennium Man

Perhaps the most notable part of today’s victory is manager Bud Black claiming his 1000th career managerial victory. Black started his first managerial season back in 2007 for the San Diego Padres. 15 years later and in his sixth season with the Rockies, Black has reached a very special milestone. He joins an exclusive club of just 65 other managers in the history of Major League Baseball to win 1000 or more games as a manager. We here at Purple Row wish Buddy a tremendous and heartfelt congratulations to our skipper, with hopefully many more wins to come!

Take us to the Cron Zone, CJ

CJ Cron was one of two key contributors to the Rockies’ dominant win against the Dodgers. Coming off a two year extension this offseason, the first baseman and DH needed his bat to show the same pop it did last season early on. In a 2-for-4 effort this afternoon, Cron hit a single and his first home run of the 2022 season: a 445 foot, two run no-doubter that slashed its way through the wind at Coors Field and firmly established the Rockies’s lead at 5-0 in the third inning.

Dominant Díaz

Also fresh off an extension this offseason, powerhouse catcher Elias Díaz was the other key contributor on offense for the Rockies. Díaz went 2-for-4 on the afternoon with three RBIs. In addition to an RBI single in the third inning, Díaz also crushed his first home run of 2022 in the bottom of the seventh. Díaz started slowly in April and May of last season, but ended the year as one of the Rockies’ best offensive weapons with 18 home runs. A faster start this season will be a great asset to a team claiming to be ready to compete.

Hometown Hero

The Rockies brought in former Regis Jesuit High School pitcher Ty Blach as a non-roster invitee for spring training, only for the Colorado native to impress enough to earn a coveted roster spot. This afternoon Blach made his hometown debut in a Rockies uniform to great success. After a short outing from starter Antonio Senzatela yielded four total runs—three of which came on a Kris Bryant error when he lost the ball to the sun and howling spring winds on a high fly ball induced by reliever Jhoulys Chacín—the Rockies had to turn to the bullpen early. Ty Blach pitched four absolutely fantastic shutout innings of relief to earn the save, giving up just one hit, one walk, and four strikeouts. Blach is currently set for long relief work, but could find himself in a rotation spot if he continues to pitch well.

Coming up next

The Rockies will hop on a plane tonight and travel to the Lone Star State, kicking off a two game road trip against the Texas Rangers. The left-handed Austin Gomber will make his season debut on Monday, fully healed from his pars defect fracture that ended his 2021 season prematurely. He’ll square off against Rangers lefty Taylor Hearn, who had an ERA of 4.66 across 104 ¹⁄₃ innings in 2021. First pitch will be at 2:05 MDT.